Opinion: Match & Show Ratings for June 6 to June 12

Welcome to TPWW’s Emperor Smeat’s Match and Show Ratings for the week of June 6th to June 12th.

Match and show star ratings (out of 5):

WWE

WWE RAW (June 7)
* #1 Contender for RAW Tag Team Championship Battle Royale – RK-Bro vs. New Day vs. Mace & T-Bar vs. The Viking Raiders vs. Lucha House Party vs. The Miz & John Morrison – 2.5
* Elias vs. Jaxson Ryker – 1.5
* #1 Contender for United States Championship – Ricochet vs. Humberto Carrillo – 2.5
* Jeff Hardy vs. Cedric Alexander – 2.5
* Nikki Cross & Asuka vs. Rhea Ripley & Charlotte Flair – 2.5
* Mansoor vs. Drew Gulak – 2.0
* Kofi Kingston vs. Riddle – 3.0
Overall – 2.0
Best – Riddle & Orton’s antics during the show.
Worst – The show closing Alexa’s Playground segment with Shayna Baszler.
Show Notes – AJ Styles’ mocking praise to all of RAW’s tag teams and Riddle’s promo part & Orton’s reaction to it were funny. RAW’s Tag division opening promo segment was a rare hit for RAW openers. Pearce, Deville, Flair, & Ripley backstage segment was boring. Viking Raiders, Styles, & Omos backstage segment was goofy. Ryker looks weird with the new hair cut. McIntyre chopping the table in half with his sword was cool. WWE title contract signing segment was all right despite dragging a bit too long. Nikki Cross interview segment was okay. Carrillo’s Spanish Fly on the apron to the floor was both cool and scary looking. Ricochet vs. Carrillo was mostly good despite the lame double countout finish. MVP & Kingston backstage segment was excellent. Hardy & Alexandr’s pre-match promos were quite good. Women’s tag match was mostly decent despite the pacing being rough at times. The Ripley vs. Flair feud has stunk so far. Riddle & Orton backstage segment was both dumb and funny. Riddle was lucky to not be seriously hurt from Kingston’s botched hurricanrana spot. Kingston vs. Riddle was mostly good, especially the latter half. Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler backstage segment was dull. Alexa’s Playground segment with Baszler was awful and had one of the dumbest ever endings in RAW history. This week’s show was average at best overall but also very skippable.

NXT (June 8)
* Austin Theory vs. Oney Lorcan – 3.0
* Isaiah “Swerve” Scott vs. Killian Dain – 2.5
* Mercedes Martinez vs. some jobber – 1.0 (Squash)
* Grizzled Young Veterans vs. August Grey & Ikemen Jiro – 2.5
* Dakota Kai vs. Ember Moon – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Return of the Million Dollar Championship and Io Shirai’s surprise return.
Worst – Mercedes Martinez vs. some nameless jobber match.
Show Notes – Theory vs. Lorcan opening match was quite good despite the ending shenanigans. LA Knight mansion promo segment mocking Cameron Grimes was decent. Legado del Fantasma, Bronson Reed, & MSK promo segment was all right but both the North American and NXT Tag titles being on the line in a 6-man tag match at TakeOver is interesting. Swerve vs. Dain was mostly decent despite the ending shenanigans. Grimes mansion promo segment was funny. Martinez & Xia Li brawl was okay. Breezango interview segment was all right. Triple H and Indi Hartwell’s reaction to Poppy hugging Dexter Lumis was hilarious. The reveal of the return of the Million Dollar belt in WWE was cool. Ever-Rise segment was lame. Grizzled Young Vets not giving a pre-match promo was a bit odd at first but made sense afterwards with the post-match stuff with Thatcher & Ciampa. Candice LeRae & Poppy promo were decent at best but Io Shirai’s surprise return was awesome. Dok Hendrix’s segments hyping up TakeOver were corny. Kai vs. Moon was an entertaining back-and-forth action style bout despite the lame DQ ending. Moon & Raquel Gonzalez post-match brawl was okay. Karrion Kross, Kyle O’Reilly, Johnny Gargano, Pete Dunne, & Adam Cole promo segment & brawl was all right despite it ending a bit flat. This week’s TakeOver: In Your House go-home show was mostly enjoyable overall.

Friday Night SmackDown (June 11)
* Kevin Owens & Big E vs. Apollo Crews & Sami Zayn – 3.0
* Carmella vs. Liv Morgan – 2.0
* Montez Ford vs. Chad Gable – 3.0
* King Corbin vs. Shinsuke Nakamura – 2.0
Overall – 2.5
Best – Roan Reigns & Jimmy Uso backstage promo segment.
Worst – Bayley’s “Ding Dong, Hello!” talk show segment.
Show Notes – Opening Roman Reigns & Jimmy Uso promo segment was all right. The Usos backstage segment was okay. Ouch at Big E landing hard on his shoulder on the outside from his failed spear to the ropes spot. Owens & Big E vs. Crews & Zayn was a good action filled match. Crews & Zayn post-match promo was decent. Gable & Street Profits backstage segment was fine. Carmella vs. Morgan was decent at best. Cesaro’s beatdown of Seth Rollins was the only good part of a cringey Bayley’s “Ding Dong, Hello!” talk show segment. Rey Mysterio went a bit overboard with the melodramatics during his interview segment. Ford vs. Gable was quite good up until the lame DQ finish by Otis. Otis looks really weird with his new clean shaven appearance. Corbin vs. Nakamura was nothing special. Corbins’s feud with Nakamura & Rick Boogs over his crown has been somewhat dumb so far. The multiple Reigns & Jey Uso’s fancy backstage room segments were all right overall. Corbin, Sonya Deville, & Adam Pearce backstage segment was a bit lame. Reigns & Usos backstage segment was excellent, especially Reigns’ motivational speech to Jimmy Uso. Reigns chucking Dominik hard to the outside looked brutal. Mysterio & Reigns face-off promo & brawl with Dominik segment was entertaining. This week’s show was mostly average overall.

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AEW

AEW Dark Elevation (June 7)
* Rache Chanel vs. Jade Cargill – 1.5 (Squash)
* Santana & Ortiz vs. Liam Gray & Adrian Alanis – 2.0 (Squash)
* Scorpio Sky vs. Trevor Read – 2.0
* Team Taz (Brian Cage & Powerhouse Hobbs) vs. Trevor Aeon & Kendall Blake – 2.5 (Squash)
* Danny Limelight vs. Evil Uno – 2.5
* Mike Sydal vs. “All Ego” Ethan Page – 2.5
* Dark Order (Alan “5” Angels & Alex Reynolds) vs. The Acclaimed – 3.0
* Kris Statlander vs. Queen Aminata – 2.5
* The Wingmen (JD Drake & Ryan Nemeth) vs. Varsity Blonds – 2.5
* Diamante vs. Hikaru Shida – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Diamante vs. Hikaru Shida match.
Worst – The botched finish to the Kris Statlander vs. Queen Aminata match.
Show Notes – Opening Santana & Ortiz promo segment was all right. Chanel vs. Cargill post-match promo by Mark Sterling was decent. The ending sequence to the Santana & Ortiz vs. Gray & Alanis squash match was cool. Evil Uno & Dark Order backstage promo segment about Miro & Limelight was okay. Varsity Blonds backstage promo segment was decent. Hoobs’ bodyslam destruction of Blake was awesome. Team Taz vs. Aeon & Black was an entertaining jobber destruction match. Ouch at Limelight’s mouth getting busted open. Limelight vs. Uno was a solid back-and-forth style match. Diamante backstage promo segment was all right. Max Caster’s pre-match rap mocking the Dark Order was splendid. Dark Order vs. The Acclaimed was mostly good despite the ending shenanigans. Tony Schiavone & Paul Wight debating if Aminata rubbing her butt on Statlander counted as a butt boop was a bit funny. Statlander vs. Aminata was a decent competitive bout despite the botched finish. Shida’s new short hair style looks very nice. Diamante vs. Shida was quite good. This week’s show was mostly enjoyable overall.

AEW Dark (June 8)
* Lance Archer vs. Zicky Dice – 2.0 (Squash)
* Abadon vs. Willow Nightingale – 2.0
* Cezar Bononi vs. Cyrus – 2.5
* Angelico vs. Matthew Justice – 2.5
* Tay Conti vs. Natalia Markova – 3.0
* Chaos Project vs. JP & Tommy Daily – 2.5
* Marko Stunt vs. Ariel Dominguez – 2.0
* Sonny Kiss vs. Aaron Solow – 2.5
* Nyla Rose vs. Missa Kate – 1.5 (Squash)
* Bear Bronson vs. QT Marshall – 3.0
* Thunder Rosa vs. Megan Bayne – 2.5
* Dark Order (Stu Grayson, 10, & Colt Cabana) vs. Justin Law, Dan Barry, & Kit Sackett – 2.5
* Big Swole & KiLynn King vs. Sea Stars – 3.0
* Matt Sydal vs. Dante Martin – 3.5
Overall – 3.0
Best – Matt Sydal vs. Dante Martin match.
Worst – Nyla Rose vs. Missa Kate match.
Show Notes – Archer vs. Dice opener was a decent squash match. Matt Hardy offering a bounty to TH2 to get rid of Christian Cage was interesting. Ricky Starks’ reactions on commentary to Abadon during her match was a bit funny. Some guy in the crowd yelling “ah you suck … that sucks for you nerd” to Ryan Nemeth after his failed cross body sneak attack to Cyrus was hilarious. Bononi vs. Cyrus was a decent hoss style match. Yikes at Justice landing hard on the guard rail from his leap from the turnbuckle. Martin’s promo about Sydal was a bit too bland. Conti vs. Markova was a pretty good back-and-forth style bout. Joey Janela’s interview segment was funny, especially Alex Marvez’s response to their party at Mommy Milkers. Kiss vs. Solow was a decent competitive bout despite the flat finish. Bronson vs. Marshall was quite good and one of Marshall’s best singles matches in AEW. Rosa vs. Bayne was a nice submission focused bout. Cabana’s stiff looking clothesline spot to Sackett was sweet. Swole & King vs. Sea Stars was pretty good despite its short length. QT Marshall interview segment was all right. Sydal vs. Martin was a very good back-and-forth action filled match and one of the best matches on Dark in recent months. This week’s show was entertaining overall.

AEW Dynamite (June 11)
* Angelico vs. Christian Cage – 3.0
* Trios match – Death Triangle (PAC & Penta El Zero Miedo) & Eddie Kingston vs. The Young Bucks & Brandon Cutler – 3.5
* TNT Championship – Evil Uno vs. Miro (c) – 3.0
* Lance Archer vs. Chandler Hopkins – 1.5 (Squash)
* Nyla Rose vs. Leyla Hirsch – 3.0
* Team Taz (Brian Cage & Powerhouse Hobbs) vs. 10 & Hangman Adam Page – 3.5
Overall – 4.0
Best – Death Triangle & Eddie Kingston vs. The Young Bucks & Brandon Cutler match.
Worst – The Wingmen backstage promo segment.
Show Notes – Angelico vs. Cage opener was a good back-and-forth style match. Tony Schiavone’s delivery of his Brock Anderson’s AEW debut match announcement was funny. Brock legit looks like his dad Arn from his younger days in WCW. Cody Rhodes & QT Marshall promo segment was all right. Penta’s sunset flip into a Destroyer combo on the Young Bucks was cool. The Trios tag match was a very good action packed bout, especially the latter half. Post-match brawl with Good Bros & Frankie Kazarian was swell. The Omega “conspiracy” video was a bit funny. The Pinnacle promo was excellent and Inner Circle destroying Pinnacle’s limo was both goofy and cool. Darby Allin & Sting segment was okay. Evil Uno pre-match promo of wanting to win the TNT title to honor Brodie Lee’s memory was splendid. TNT title match was quite good, especially the latter half. Andrade El Idolo vignette was magnificent. Omega, Callis, & Jungle Boy promo & brawl segment was entertaining. Scorpio Sky & Ethan Page promo segment mocking Allin was fine. Rose’s Avalanche Beast Bomb finisher looked legit painful for both her and Hirsch. Rose vs. Hirsch was a fine David vs. Goliath style match. Britt Baker interview segment was great. Team Taz vs. 10 & Page was a very good hard hitting bout despite the sloppy finish. This week’s show was the best one of AEW’s set of Friday shows so far.

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NJPW, Impact, & Other Wrestling

NJPW Dominion 2021 (June 7)
* El Phantasmo, Taiji Ishimori, Chase Owens, Yujiro Takahashi, & EVIL vs. SHO, YOSHI-HASI, Tomohiro Ishii, Hirooki Goto, & Hiroshi Tanahashi – 3.0
* BUSHI, SANADA, & Tetsuya Naito vs. DOUKI, Zack Sabre Jr., & Taichi – 3.0
* IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship – YOH vs. El Desperado (c) – 3.5
* Jeff Cobb vs. Kota Ibushi – 4.0
* IWGP World Heavyweight Championship – Shingo Takagi vs. Kazuchika Okada – 5.0
Overall – 4.5
Best – IWGP World Heavyweight Championship match.
Worst – Rocky Romero sounding dead tired on English commentary throughout the show.
Show Notes – El Phantasmo’s flying Coast-to-Coast back rake to YOSHI-HASHI spot was funny. Bullet Club vs. SHO, YOSHI-HASHI, Ishii, Goto, & Tanahashi 10-man tag opener match was entertaining and a bit surprised Bullet Club won. BUSHI’s blinky lights cyclops entrance mask looked very cool. The back-and-forth counters ending sequence between SANADA & Sabre Jr. was spectacular. LIJ vs. Suzuki-Gun 6-man tag was a pretty good back-and-forth style match. Yikes at the welts on YOH’s chest. Desperado’s KO punch & Pinche Loco finishing combo was cool. IWGP Jr. title match was a very good action packed bout. Ibushi’s Frankensteiner to Cobb spot and Cobb’s F5 spot to Ibushi were cool. Ibushi’s knockout sell to Cobb’s Kamigoye was terrific. Ibushi’s mid-air Kamigoye looked both ugly and brutal. Cobb vs. Ibushi was a fantastic hard hitting bout. Ouch at Takagi’s neck after Okada’s sloppy spinning Tombstone spot. Takagi’s Rainmaker counter was nice. Takagi’s Dragon Suplex & sliding clothesline combo to Okada was sweet. IWGP World title match was a magnificent grueling battle and legit shocked that Takagi won. Takagi completely deserved holding top gold in NJPW after the amazing hard work he’s put in the company these past two years. NJPW Dominion 2021 was an amazing show overall.

NJPW Strong (June 11)
* Alex Coughlin vs. Hikuleo – 2.5
* The DKC & Clark Connors vs. Lio Rush & Rocky Romero – 3.0
* Wheeler Yuta & Fred Yehi vs. Jordan Clearwater & Misterioso – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – The DKC & Clark Connors vs. Lio Rush & Rocky Romero match.
Worst – The finish to the Wheeler Yuta & Fred Yehi vs. Jordan Clearwater & Misterioso feeling abrupt.
Show Notes – Coughlin vs. Hikuleo opener was a solid competitive bout. DKC & Connors vs. Rush & Romero was a pretty good hard hitting match. Romero & Conors post-match scuffle was nice. Romero & Rush post-match promo was okay. Yuta & Yehi vs. Clearwater & Misterioso was a good back-and-forth style bout despite the abrupt ending.

Impact Wrestling Impact! (June 10)
* Rosemary vs. Havok – 2.5
* Kimber Lee vs. Tasha Steelz – 2.5
* Petey Williams & Trey Miguel vs. Rohit Raju & Chris Bey – 3.5
* Joe Doering vs. Eddie Edwards – 2.0
* No DQ match – W. Morrissey vs. Willie Mack – 3.0
Overall – 3.0
Best – Petey Williams & Trey Miguel vs. Rohit Raju & Chris Bey match.
Worst – Tenille Dashwood talk show segment with Rachael Ellering & Jordynne Grace.
Show Notes – Opening Scott D’Amore, Tony Khan, & Don Callis promo segment was all right despite Khan rambling a bit too much at the end. D’Amore’s swerve to Callis of Sami Callihan getting winner of Omega vs. Moose at Slammiversary was nice. Omega & Pals and D’Amore backstage segment was decent. Bria Myers & Same Beale “promo class” segment was goofy but a bit funny. D’Amore, Callihan, & Tommy Dreamer backstage segment was decent. Rosemary vs. Havok was a solid bout. Lee vs. Steelez was mostly decent despite its somewhat flat pacing. Purrazzo & Pals and Fire N’Flava post-match brawl with Rosemary & Havok was all right. Maclin vignette was splendid. Williams & Miguel vs. Raju & Bey was a very entertaining action packed match. Williams’ Ulimate Destroyer spot to Madman Fulton during the post-match brawl with Ace Austin & Josh Alexander was cool. Mack & Rich Swann interview segment was okay. Tenille Dashwood talk show segment with Rachael Ellering & Jordynne Grace was very awkward and not in a good comedic way. Violent By Design promo vignette was superb. Doering vs. Edwards was decent at best despite the lame DQ ending. Moose promo vignette was all right. Morrissey vs. Mack was a pretty good hard hitting match. This week’s Against All Odds go-home show was enjoyable overall.

Impact Wrestling Against All Odds (June 12)
* Tag Team Street Fight – The Good Brothers vs. Tommy Dreamer & Sami Callihan – 2.5
* Joe Doering vs. Satoshi Kojima – 3.0
* #1 Contender for X-Division Championship Five-Way match – Ace Austin vs. Chris Bey vs. Rohit Raju vs. Petey Williams vs. Trey Miguel – 3.5
* W. Morrissey vs. Rich Swann – 3.0
* Tenille Dashwood vs. Jordynne Grace – 2.5
* Knockouts Tag Team Championship – Susan & Kimber Lee vs. Fire N’Flava (c) – 3.0
* Impact World Tag Team Championship – Decay (Black Taurus & Crazzy Steve) vs. Violent By Design (Deaner & Rhino) (c) – 3.5
* Knockouts Championship – Rosemary vs. Deonna Purrazzo (c) – 3.0
* Impact World Championship match – Moose vs. Kenny Omega (c) – 3.5
Overall – 3.5
Best – Impact World Championship match.
Worst – The no contest finish to the X-Division #1 Contender’s match.
Show Notes – Karl Anderson getting nailed in the nuts by a ring bell spot from Dreamer was funny. Street Fight tag team opener was a decent hardcore match. Doering got some really great height with his Spinebuster spot to Kojima. Doering vs. Kojima was a quite good hard hitting bout and a bit surprised Doering won. Madman Fulton’s double chokeslam, powerbomb, & powerslam combo on 4 guys at the same time was awesome. X-Division #1 Contender’s match was very entertaining until the buzz kill no contest finish. Morrissey’s F5 & powerbombs spots to Swann looked brutal and legit painful. Morrissey vs. Swann was a good physical match. Dashwood vs. Grace was mostly decent despite the ending shenanigans. Knockouts Tag title match was pretty good. Impact Tag title match was very good, especially the latter half. Knockouts title match was a good back-and-forth style match. AEW wrestlers acting as the crowd for the Impact title match at Daily’s Place was a good decision. Yikes at Moose crashing hard into a row of chairs at ringside. Ouch at Omega landing hard on his shoulder from Moose’s slam. Moose’s top rope Spanish Fly spot was cool. Impact World title match was a very good stiff match despite the ending shenanigans. The post-match stuff with Callihan & Don Callis was a bit goofy. Callis firing Callihan is interesting though. Impact’s Against All Odds was very entertaining overall.

Dark Side of the Ring – The Dynamite Kid (June 10)
Overall – 3.5
Show Notes – Mick Foley’s story of his wrestling career almost ending right as it started due to him getting his jaw broken by the Dynamite Kid in a match was interesting considering all the very rough stuff Foley did during his career. Dynamite Kid drugging an opponent and crapping in his luggage bag in a hotel room was an eye opener reaction. Kid not taking a break from wrestling after having spinal surgery was insane. The infamous incident with Jacques Rougeau in 1988 revolving around Kid’s jealously with Rougeau’s quick rise in stardom and Rougeau revealing the mob hit was just an empty threat by him was interesting. Kid’s ex-wife story of her becoming suicidal because of his growing deranged antics away from the ring was a bit sad. Kid finally coming to terms with the emotional and physical pain he caused to his family after a visit by his eldest daughter was touching. Dark Side of the Ring’s Dynamite Kid episode was a very good look into the tragic and avoidable downfall of Kid’s wrestling career and life.

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Weekly Awards:

• Best match of the week – IWGP World Heavyweight Championship – Shingo Takagi vs. Kazuchika Okada (NJPW Dominion 2021)
• Worst match of the week – Elias vs. Jaxson Ryker (WWE RAW)
• Best show of the week – NJPW Dominion 2021
• Worst show of the week – WWE RAW